Workbench inventory

The tools I keep within reach.

A practical inventory of the languages, patterns, instruments, and specialist companions that help me shape systems. This is a working loadout, not a list of endorsements—and no single tool belongs in every quest.

Loadout reviewed

Core materials

Languages and ways of shaping systems

Reagents

Reagents

  • RubyA familiar, expressive material for applications and libraries.
  • RustSystems work with explicit boundaries and dependable performance.
  • JavaScriptProgressive, dependency-light behavior for the browser.
  • ClojureData, composition, and a functional lens for reframing a problem.

Formulae

Formulae

  • Clean ArchitectureKeeping business decisions independent from delivery details.
  • Domain-Driven DesignUsing language and boundaries that match the problem being solved.
  • Monolithic systemsChoosing cohesion and operational simplicity when they serve the work.
  • Agentic OrchestrationGiving specialist roles explicit routes, hand-offs, and validation.

Working instruments

Tools made and used in the workshop

  • Distrobox environment manager

    Cardboard Box

    A Rust CLI and terminal cockpit for declarative, repeatable distrobox environments.Examine source

  • Workstation toolkit

    Potions

    Dotfiles, but not boring.Examine source

  • Jekyll utility

    JEX

    A command-line utility for running Jekyll development with containers.Examine source

  • Personal field guide

    This Site

    The evolving home for my work, notes, and experiments.Examine source

Supporting apparatus

The small stack beneath the work

Docker
A repeatable container boundary for local tools and services.
JEX
A predictable local loop for Jekyll work.
Jekyll
Liquid, Markdown, and Sass for a durable static site.
GitHub Pages
A simple public host for the finished artifact.

Eidolon party

Specialists, not a single oracle

When AI joins the work, I route the task to a role with a clear responsibility. These are workflow boundaries—not rankings, decoration, or claims of model superiority.

Eidolons · Released v3.2.0

  • ATLAS

    Scouts the terrain and returns evidence before a plan is drawn.

  • RAMZA

    Turns intent and constraints into a decision-ready plan.

  • Vivi

    Implements an agreed shape and proves the result works.

  • FORGE

    Examines trade-offs when the right path is not yet obvious.

  • VIGIL

    Finds root causes when a system behaves against its design.

  • Kupo

    Handles bounded, mechanical work with a light touch.

Artifacts over inventory

The inventory matters when it leaves a trace.

Tools earn their place through the systems they help build and the notes they help preserve. The useful evidence lives beyond this shelf.